In 2019, the Orange County Grantmakers, a funder collaborative, embarked on driving positive change by addressing equity in the region. With support from the St. Joseph Health Community Partnership Fund and other funders, OCG released the Orange County Equity Report. The report included key data points for housing, education, and other economic indicators. OCG commissioned the report because of their continued focus on creating a stronger more equitable region. The data in the equity report has helped drive strategic and public policy planning from 2019 through 2020 and will continue throughout 2021.
In 2020, OCG launched their first strategic and equity planning processes which will continue through 2021. OCG held several informative virtual events to educate the funding community on issues impacting equity, resiliency, and innovation. They also hosted their first virtual Summit for Nonprofit Leaders. Over 400 attendees, including funders and nonprofit leaders, attended the summit where they heard about their collective impact on driving a more equitable region.
Since its inception, OCG members have granted hundreds of millions of dollars in Orange County among the following priority areas: housing, education, access to healthcare, jobs & skills, food insecurity and others.
Executive Board of Directors members committed to serving their 2021 term include:
- Advisory Chair, Jason Lacsamana, St. Josephs
- Vice Chair, Terrie Doizaki, Weingart Foundation
- Membership Chair, Joanna Kong, Sun Family Foundation
- Program Chair, Tiffany Alva, First Five Orange County
- Public Policy Chair, Adriana Galdamez, Cox Communications
- Summit Chair, John Guastaferro, Anaheim Community Foundation
- At Large Member, Nate Brown, PIMCO
- At Large Member, Ben Drutman, Simon Scholars
- At Large Member- Affiliate/Partner Groups: Cathleen Otero, Orange County Community Foundation
“Orange County Grantmakers is proud of our work and growth around equity over the last two years. The impacts of COVID-19 highlighted the importance of a strong philanthropic community that is responsive to the needs of our nonprofits. We continue to grapple with what it means to be in philanthropic service with an equity lens,” said Jason Lacsamana, OCG Advisory Chair.“ The 2020 State of Philanthropy Report OCG released in October of last year highlights this continued desire to learn, engage and collaborate around clear policy and advocacy goals, seek commonalities, and work collaboratively,” he added.
In 2021, OCG plans to continue extensive strategic planning to address issues impacting the region such as healthcare, immigration, housing/homelessness and civic engagement/systemic change. More specifically, we will address racial bias and how racism is a public health issue; how the philanthropic community can recognize, invest and uplift meaningful contributions of the immigrant community, and how policy restrictions have led to challenges with housing. From a civic engagement standpoint, OCG will address what system changes need to take place in order to move vulnerable OC communities towards a more equitable future. OCG will continue to seek insights from elected officials, corporate executives, nonprofit leaders, funders, university professors, researchers and the business community to collectively drive this work.
To become a member, funders, philanthropists and grantmaking organizations must fund a minimum of $250,000 in Orange County, CA. Membership is $1,000 for first year members.
To join, please visit www.ocgrantmakers.org and email OCG Executive Director Taryn Palumbo at taryn.palumbo@ocgrantmakers.org.
The Orange County Grantmakers (OCG) is a funder collaborative committed to advancing social impact by supporting, strengthening and building adaptive leadership across our nonprofit and philanthropic community. To learn more about Orange County Grantmakers, visit www.orangecountymakers.org, like them on Facebook or follow on Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Submitted By:
Adriana Galdamez
Public Affairs Manager
Cox Communications
